Apples

For so many years in the past The Mister and I made large batches of applesauce for the freezer. He would cut them in quarters, I would core and cut them into pieces and put them in the large kettle. It took us all morning. Then they were cooked down and mashed until I deemed the consistency was perfect. The kettle was brought to the counter and the OLD Foley Food Mill was attached. As I ladled the hot stew into the mill, The Mister did the cranking. When the bowl under the mill was full, it was poured into another very large container until the milling and cranking and ladling and pouring was finally finished. A touch of cinnamon and nutmeg was added. The skins left on always made our applesauce be very pink in color and the flavor was outstanding. The resulting sauce was then ladled into jars and containers and two bowlfuls were saved out for us to have later when still warm. Cleaning up was my responsibility, but I never could have cut and milled so many apples by myself. We did a couple of batches every year!

This year I am just eating one a day and dehydrating the rest. No more applesauce. I do NOT use a corer but just my handy sharp knives. (Not as much waste.) The day has come to back off and it really is OK. Time moves on. 

Well that was only four and I have EIGHT more of these larger Cortlands to process! I shall finish this project in two more days. 

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In the Mood

No matter what comes at you, be ready to roll! My Halloween creations have started.

B/W and colorful

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APPLE Time!

I got four more 1/2 gallons of the wonderful cider from Jayne's Orchard this morning and now I'm set until next year. Just topped them off and, after they freeze, will re-cap and move them to the big freezer.  A friend generously took me to the orchard in the past and I got four 1/2 gallons then. Today a different friend took me there and she had a great time playing with the dogs. How could I not go for freshly picked and sorted apples? They are extra large this year! 

1/2 Peck Cortlands

1/2 Peck Macouns

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The link below is to the Orchard's Facebook page.

Explore the Orchard Store

In the Kitchen

I had about 3 lbs. russet potatoes that needed to be used. They were sitting on the front porch in a plastic basket and I noticed some sprouts starting to form. I decided to make up potato soup from scratch without a recipe. Here's what I did. Yesterday I washed and then boiled them whole. After they cooled down I put them in the refrigerator overnight. This morning I peeled and diced them all. In a pot, I melted some butter, extra sharp white cheese (pre-grated about a month ago), and added pepper, onion powder, a touch of garlic powder, celery salt, dried parsley flakes, a shake or two of paprika and a little water. After that all melted and blended,  I used two cups of whole milk that I had mixed in a shaker with a few tablespoons of flour. As that was all simmering on low, I then added the potatoes. Made my lunch! Surprised myself at how good it is! Will freeze the other containers for another bleak day!

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Feelin' Fall

No apples here yet, but soon...... a run to the orchard with a friend and the purchase of the rest of my yearly supply of cider is well anticipated. The things I like best at this time of year have to be the colors and the beautiful decorations I see all around here. I keep it simple. The pumpkin is a ceramic that was delivered to my mother when she was living at the skilled nursing facility. It was filled with freshly cut multicolored autumn flowers. The funny part is that you cannot see what she did to that pumpkin! She took a marker and drew a scary pumpkin face on the back side. That was way back around 2000 and is the main reason I have kept this treasure!

Soon after I made this arrangement, my daughter arrived with a wonderful bouquet of flowers from her garden.

By the way, heat's on! The Regency propane gas fireplace insert heater is the only source for heat and it has been going strong since 11-01-1997! It was purchased for only $2,346.42 including installation. It is serviced every year and I think that's why it still functions so well.

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October

Today would be my Mother's 107th birthday. She died in 2005. I miss her. She was born when her mother was age 40. She never had brothers or sisters.

Momma's Near  ~July 31, 2009 GMR~

Momma's on my shelf

Because I put her there.

It was four years ago

She doesn't have a care.

She's close to me nearby

She doesn't rest alone.

She watches over me

As she has always done.

Her time was filled with joy

Her time endured some pain.

Her love of God was strong

On my shelf she shall remain.

 

Grocery Observation

A friend took me to the grocery store today and was a great help loading the back deck of her car with both her bags and mine. Mine were heavier as I had several large bottles of juices and soda and bleach, sugar, flour, and... you get the idea. She even unloads the bags after depositing them in my kitchen. (Younger is stronger in this case!)

As I was putting things away I couldn't help but notice that the size of many things are not what they used to be as I replenished my supplies. The one that really stood out was my paper towel rolls. I happened to have one older full roll left. The new ones were smaller. See?  I guess we'll all have to live with diminishing product sizes and increasing costs but I don't like it at all. It's isn't the store - it is the suppliers and manufacturers, I'm convinced. But as a frugal person it annoys me that this is happening. I can't buy one or two rolls either - they are packed in bundles of 6 or 9! Got me coming and going!

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A Beautiful Weekend

On Saturday my youngest son rode his bike here for a visit and we had a great ride-about around the lake on the golf car. Some difference between his motorcycle and driving my vehicle, but we went very slowly and really reminisced about the days when he lived here way back when... His first words were, "Ah! It still smells like cabin in here."

Today I recharged the golf car and took another ride and even ventured further out. I had to put on a really warm jacket, but the sun was shining and the air was fresh. As I looked down the lake from the north end, the clouds were amazing and beautiful.

Just around the corner I spied a cluster of mushrooms on a shady plot and couldn't resist taking a few shots. I took too many, narrowed it down to just these, and still can't decide which I like best.

As I continued around the lake and then down the road I turned onto a long private driveway. I spotted this old red barn on my right.

At the top of the long gravel drive is the home of friends and the old apple trees with their fruit took my eye.

I picked four! They might not be pretty but don't let appearance fool you! After posing for their picture, I ate one. Lots of juice and flavor, But - BUT! Look at the beautiful patterns on the skin!

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Autumn

The Mister and Beatrice are in good company with Dusty Miller and Pink Seedum.

James is hoping to survive his 12th winter.

This dandelion just won't give up!

Yep! Autumn is on its way...

"Yellow the bracken, golden the sheaves.

Rosy the apples, crimson the leaves.

Mist on the hillside, clouds grey and white,

Autumn, Good Morning, Summer, Good Night!"

~Florence Hoatson

Busy in the Kitchen Thursday

Haven't had pancakes for many months. Today was the day and lunch was the time. Thank goodness for Aunt Jemima - so easy - so good - no fail! (Should I keep the box when it is empty since her smiling face has been removed from the newer boxes now? (That was a mistake in my view!!)  Two large ones for lunch and one more to save. Of course I have real butter and maple syrup for toppings. 

This morning I took a 5lb. bag of frozen white meat chicken strips from the freezer and broke it down into 8 small baggies. It will make these be easier to access when I want a few. I dumped the entire bag into my handy-dandy blue tub and did the sorting and bagging and popped all back into the freezer. When I was doing this, the power went off and the stand-by generator kicked in! Love that generator! The left-over small pieces were then put into my stove pot, topped off with water and simmered all afternoon, along with some pepper, garlic, onion, and celery powder. Later on I added a blurp (my word) of Gravy Master and a few teaspoons of corn starch dissolved in cold water to the mix and simmered it some more. I will use some for supper. My taste test was really successful. The next step of course, is to bottle up and store some in the freezer. I think it will go good with mashed potatoes! What a feeling of accomplishment!

After the rain, a doe and fawn came for a drink from the lake.

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Good Day - Rough Day

Tuesday afternoon my dear friend delivered a loaf of her wonderful lemon poppyseed zucchini bread. It was wrapped in aluminum foil and it was still WARM! Great surprise! Needless to say I cut me a slice to have with supper.

Wednesday after my nap I dug out the old Daisy sealer and the roll of foodsaver plastic that my brother had given me when I couldn't find any more of the original type seal bags. *I blogged about this in the past. The thing is, the old bags were already sealed at one end and were individual items of two different sizes. It just another 'make-do' project now and has been useful several times - just a little more work. *Links to old blogs at the bottom here.

They have been popped into the freezer and I can have one slice at a time.

The 'rough day' part is that I went to the local health system to get my usual 8 week shoulder injection. The original orthopedic surgeon has retired and this was my second visit with the new fellow. The last time went ok, even though I had to have lumbar x-rays for a badly sprained back but the shoulder shot hit the mark well. Today he didn't seem to be sure of where to inject and was asking me where it should go. I only remember where the original guy did it so I indicated the area. After he removed the needle, he grabbed some gauze as the injection site was bleeding. (I am not on any blood thinners.) The bad thing was - are you ready? The blood stained the back neck of my brand new special mauve waffle weave shirt! It was the first time I wore it and did so, knowing it would stretch over the shoulder to make access easy. I couldn't wait to get home and rinse it out with cold water. Yes, it did come out.

*two links below

OLD Food Sealer

My Two Loaves

North East Pennsylvania Photos

Recent slide show version here: Turn sound on! Love the first photo of spider web and watch for a great shot of chipmunk near the end!

Click here >>> Slide Show

This is a sunrise photo!

By the way, Mother Nature is on her own schedule and she doesn't care one bit if I'm ready or not! 

Good Morning

First, the view through the windows was lovely as I did the second rinse of the pinto beans that had previously been rinsed, sorted and soaked overnight in preparation for soup.

A short while after the second straining and rinsing was  done, I looked out again and - what did I see? My friend was visiting again, for the umpteenth time this year.

I took his picture through the front storm door window. I knew if I went out on the porch he would do his usual fly-away!

The bean soup project continued. After adding water enough to cover the beans by a couple of inches, I chopped up and added a thawed pre-barbecued chicken breast, my frozen, pre-cooked crumbled bacon and pre-cut frozen onion slices A half bottle of mild picante sauce was then added and the potful simmered for over four hours, being stirred when I thought about it. Oh my goodness! My lunch was super good and nourishing too. If you wonder why I used the mild version of picante sauce, it's because I do not like anything at all that is hot spicy. I never made this from scratch before and just read the directions on the bag and will make it again. Other vegetables could have been added but I decided not to this time. Of course after cooling it down, first on the counter and then in the refrigerator, I moved three of the containers into the freezer.  The photos do not do the soup justice - you have to taste it to know how good it is! 

When busy bottling my soup, I looked up and out the window and saw the bald eagle fly over! What a day!